A couple of weeks ago, I followed my husband around for a work trip up to Cairns and Atherton Tablelands. On this trip I had the privilege of meeting the lovely family that takes care of a banana flour farm on the Tablelands. I do not have gluten issues my self, so this was actually the first time I had heard anything about banana flour other than that it exists. I was surprised to find out so many amazing things about banana flour. For one thing banana flour is an excellent solution to the large amount of waste in banana farming. There are tons of unripe bananas that are culled because they are unsuitable for sale of export. Now anything that does not sell can be turned into green banana flour, which significantly reduces the amount of overall waste. Banana flour is also 100% gluten free and has become a popular choice for people that are avoiding gluten. Banana flour is also one of the bets sources for resistant starch. Resistant starch is a pre biotic. The starch molecules by pass your small intestines and go directly to your large intestines where they help feed the millions of good bacteria in your gut leading to better digestion, increase absorption of minerals, (calcium in particular) and has even been shown to help reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

I actually got going on a recipe with banana flour as soon as I got home but it has just taken me to long to write anything up! The main question everyone asks is “does it taste like banana?” the answer is no, well not to me. Banana flour is made out of green bananas and in my opinion it does smell quite ‘green’. It reminded me of barley grass smell but it does not taste like it. The taste is mild. Due to the high starch content, it is a little dry, so it will make your baking turn out more on the dry side of things. The solution to this is actually to use less flour. About 25-30% less is suggested.

I was so lucky to have this beautiful family also give me samples of their many other products including smoothie mixes and their resistant starch supplement. I cannot wait to start creating more recipes so stay tuned!

If you are gluten free, definitely consider banana flour. I actually find gluten free flours can be quite unhealthy at times with lots of additives and too many ingredients. Even if your not gluten free and are looking for a more nutritious flour to bake with, banana flour is awesome. If your interested in their products you can find a link to their website here: http://www.naturalevolutionfoods.com.au/

Pour your wet batter onto your dry batter and mix until well combined. If you find the mixture too dry feel free to add a little more almond milk

Mix trough chocolate chips

Scoop out even sized balls (I used an ice cream scoop) onto a lightly greased baking tray and flatten into cookie shape. The cookies do not rise very much but do expand slightly so make sure the cookies are not touching.

Bake at 180 C for 15 -18 minutes

* If you can not find banana flour you can sub any gluten free flour of choice. Oat flower works well, however you may need to reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe.